Opinions on my first Shadowrun Infiltrator build

[MrButtons]

400 point start

Elf, Qualities Blandness, Mild gold allergy, mild alcohol addiction
Job: Pornstar working as a Shadowrunner for the Organization

Body 4 Agility 6 Reaction 4 Strength 2 Charisma 3 Intuition 4 Logic 5 Willpower 3
Edge 2 Initiative 8

Skills:
Stealth group 5
Automatics 2 spec in Ceska Black Scorpion
Dodge 3 spec in Automatics
Electronics 3
Ground Vehicle 3
Escape Artist 2 spec grabs
Perception 3 spec security equipment
Tracking 2 spec Urban areas
Con spec Security guards
Etiquette 2
Intimidate 2

Knowledge skills
English N/A
Mandarin 3
The Organization politics 3
Sex 4
Seduction 4
Street lingo 3
Alcohol 3
Shadowrun Network 3
Nova Industries 2

Property: (DM limits us at R6/F4 items)
High lifestyle
Rover 2068 (Think pimped out SUV)
Reflex Recorder +2 stealth group
Mnemomic enhancer R1 (Thinking of switching this)
Muscle Aug R1 +1 Str
Muscle Toner R1 +1 Agi
Bone density R1 +1 Body
Cerebral Booster R1 +1 Logic

Ceska Black Scoprion as my main w/ hidden gun arm slide
Ruger 100
Camouflage suit
Just about everything for B&E and sensors
Disguise kits
Lonestar Uniform and ID
Skinlink
Tag eraser

Contacts:
3/4 Fixer
3/3 Fence

Just trying to see what else I could use. I've spent just about everything, I could perhaps downgrade the lifestyle if needed for improvements. Any suggestions for this first timer would be great as my DM says he'll be ruthless after our training missions are over. :P

[Neo Tin Robo]

Weapon customizations like ceramic components or easy breakdown make them much harder to detect when passing through security checks.

[Andrewmoreton]

One problem
Reflex recorders give only +1 to a skill and cannot stack

Some comments
1) Strength 2 is pretty pointless, it gives the same weapon damage as strength 1
2) I generally go for odd numbered Body and willpower as the number of boxes on the condition track is based on Stat/2 rounded up so you get the same for 3 or 4
3) You don't seem to have any recoil comp on the skorpion this means on BF you will miss a lot. I prefer the FN5-7C machine pistol with extra Recoil comp or the Ares Crusader which has some built in
4) bone density does not give +1 Body it gives +1 to damage soak
5)You have no hand to hand skills there fore ditch the Muscle Aug 1 and get Muscle toner 2 instead you need the Ag more
6) You have no extra Inititative passes this is fine if most people don't however It is generally a good think in combat . The cheap way is Cram or Jazz drugs otherwise cyberware/adept powers
7) Get some contact lenses with Smart link and a smartlink for your gun , you can never have too many dice to hit

[MrButtons]

One problem
Reflex recorders give only +1 to a skill and cannot stack

Some comments
1) Strength 2 is pretty pointless, it gives the same weapon damage as strength 1
2) I generally go for odd numbered Body and willpower as the number of boxes on the condition track is based on Stat/2 rounded up so you get the same for 3 or 4
3) You don't seem to have any recoil comp on the skorpion this means on BF you will miss a lot. I prefer the FN5-7C machine pistol with extra Recoil comp or the Ares Crusader which has some built in
4) bone density does not give +1 Body it gives +1 to damage soak
5)You have no hand to hand skills there fore ditch the Muscle Aug 1 and get Muscle toner 2 instead you need the Ag more
6) You have no extra Inititative passes this is fine if most people don't however It is generally a good think in combat . The cheap way is Cram or Jazz drugs otherwise cyberware/adept powers
7) Get some contact lenses with Smart link and a smartlink for your gun , you can never have too many dice to hit
----------------------------------------------

Thanks for the ideas. Makes sense with the lack of str skills/weapons, in my head it was meant for weight capacity but so far I've been travelling light.
Would love to get muscle toner 2, but that passes the 6R DM rule, as Toner 2 is (Ratingx5)R. Maybe get Orthoskin, or another Skill group recorder instead, or some of those initiative augments as you mentioned.
Gun has recoil, but I forgot about the smart link upgrade. I must of forgotten it as I got paranoid with hackers getting into my gear. :P

This game plays very different than D&D so I feel like fish out of water. Thanks for the tips!

[Kaun]

You have no extra IP's which has been already mentioned.

A complete lack of melee skills which seems silly for an infiltrator.

You have no comms device.

I would cyber up your eyes personally so you can do live feeds of your operations back to your team.

I'm not sure about electronics since none of your other skills compliment it.

You could use "Knowledge: Security systems". It helps trying to identify and understand what your trying to bypass.

I would say that you could use a couple more contacts, but their usefulness really depends on whos running the game.

ehh there is probably more.

[Need_A_Life]

Extra IPs can be handled through Cram, Jazz (or Blood of Kali aka "Yeah, I was getting tired of this character anyway" :smallamused:)

A TacNet seems appropriate for someone who has a lot of sensors. It's cheap and really useful. Also: Smartlink, smartlink, smartlink. Go wired, rather than offer yourself up to every scriptkiddie within signal range.

I'll assume your Commlink is covered under sensors. Either go super-cheap (easily-cracked meta-links that you regularly go through) or get the top-of-the-line customized thing, set up with the best your decker can get you.

Consider the SINner quality. Gets you 5BP and should you get caught, people can't just put a bullet in the back of your head (well, legally anyway), but mark you as a Criminal and send you off to jail instead. Thanks for false SINs, you can hide while on a job, while not having to worry about every stuffer shack.

Turn your alcohol addiction to your benefit; buy new people a few beers when you're talking business and make friends. Eats into the profit margin, but sometimes a contact is more valuable than any piece of cyberware could possibly be.

I recommend carrying a taser. They're legal, so no need to worry about getting them through most security checks and they are nasty.

If the GM uses them, spend 600 nuyen on an emotitoy; +6 to social rolls is ridiculously good for the price and if the GM uses them, you're essentially at a handicap without them.

Finally, my favourite contact is 1/1 <ghoul den/Tanamous (organ leggers)>. I tend to describe it as "I've got a dead-drop. If they like what I've left them, occasionally I get a bit of cash. If they don't, they just make it disappear. At least it is an incentive for them not to come after me."

[comicshorse]

[QUOTE=Need_A_Life;15296486

I recommend carrying a taser. They're legal, so no need to worry about getting them through most security checks and they are nasty.
[/QUOTE]

They are and are a favourite of security guards so as well as having one I'd recommend insulating your armour

[The Random NPC]

Grab some Knowledge (Local City), and roll it for everything.
I think you can specialize in Dodging (Ranged) which would be better than your current specialization.

[ActionReplay]

I'd suggest taking tranq patches and making sure to buy up unarmed for applying them to the unwilling. Rating in stun damage that is not resisted is nice. They have a better concealibility modifier too and light weight. Stimulant patches for the reasons above, guards love their stun guns.

And I'll say this just to be sure but...you do have a camera neutralizer, right?

Contacts...ye olde janitor is always a plus for getting uniforms, keys, etc at least for basic levels. Street docs are great friends to have if no one in the party is a medic. On that note, get docwagon for when it goes bad. As a porn star you should make friends with an escort service. Great way to help make more contacts too when you hook them up for a night.

[Janwin]

I highly recommend splashing some face skills, too. As an elf you can have some stupid charisma, and with con, etiquette and negotiation, you'd be surprised what you can get away with. Sometimes you don't even have to sneak in.

Definitely get your eyes cybered. I put in thermographic in my own elf infiltration build just to make up for the lack of it in the elf's own vision. You can always turn it off if not desired.

Forgery as a skill is also absolutely amazing for infiltrators. Make your own fake SINs and IDs as needed based on the mission.

Thermal damping on your armor is also good.

[MrButtons]

First off, thank you all for the tips and advice. After reading them, a lot made some obvious sense. I didn't lay out all of the items I had in my inv as well since there was a lot, and I was being lazy at the time. Here's the full shazbot folks.

400bp Equip max purchase levels: 12, 6F and 4R

Elf, Qualities Blandness, Mild gold allergy, mild alcohol addiction, SINner, Ambidextrous
Job: Pornstar working as a Shadowrunner for the Organization

Body 3 Agility 5+1 Reaction 4+1 Strength 1 Charisma 3+1 Intuition 4 Logic 4+1 Willpower 3 *(+1 from augments)
Edge 2 Initiative 8 Initiative passes 2

Skills: DM rule specializations must be more specific when too broad. ie: Dodge->ranged Range too broad, spec to specific type of weapon like automatics

Stealth group 4
Pistol 4 spec Remmington Roomsweeper
Unarmed 3 spec Defiance ex shocker
Dodge 3 spec in Automatics
Athletics 2
Ground Vehicle 3
Escape Artist 2 spec grabs
Perception 3 spec security equipment
Negotiate 2
Con spec Security guards
Etiquette 2
Negotiate 2
Hardware 1 spec security equipment
Forgery 1
(Skills prone to change, not feeling 100% with it)

Knowledge skills
English N/A
Mandarin 3
The Organization politics 3
Sex 4
Seduction 4
Street lingo 3
Alcohol 3
Shadowrun Network 3
Local city 2

Property: (DM limits us at R6/F4 items)
High lifestyle x3
Rover 2068 (antitheft, high amenities, think pimped out SUV that fits well in corp zones, debating changing due to 25k price)

Reflex Recorder +1 stealth group
Mnemomic enhancer R1 (Thinking of switching this)
Cyber eyes R3 Thermal/image link/Vision Enhancer R2/Protective overs/Eye recording
Muscle Toner R1 +1 Agi
Bone density R1 +1 Dmg soak
Cerebral Booster R1 +1 Logic
Tailored Phermones R1 +1 Charisma and social tests
Synaptic boosters R1 +1 Rea +1 Ini pass


Ares Viper Silvergun -sound supperssor, smart link
Remington Roomsweeper -silencer, smart link
Defiance Ex-Shocker
(Was thinking of dual wielding the first two, one for light armored enemies, roomsweeper for regular and groups, plus with the vision enhancement range isn't much of an issue. Could also swap Silvergun for the Shocker)

Camouflage suit -Modded with every resistance I could ala R2. As far as I read this was possible, didn't seem to have a limit except for specific armors
Helmet for added +1/+2

Contact lens R3 -flare compensation, vision magnification
Face mask
Small Disguise kits x2
Lonestar Uniform and ID
Skinlink
Tag eraser
Hidden gun arms x2
Concealable holster x2
Flash pack x2
Knee length duster
Chisel
Sequencer R1
Maglock passkey R2
Lockpick set
mini welder
Radio signal Scanner R6
Wire clippers
MAD Scanner
Motion sensor
Olfactory sensor R3
Directional microphone
Biomonitor
Medkits R3 x2
Camera neutralizer
Gecko tape gloves
White noise generator R6
Myomeric rope
Lightsticks x6

Contacts:
3/4 Fixer
3/3 Fence

[The Random NPC]

I'd like to suggest, try to roll your knowledge on everything, even if you're half way across the world, ask if they deal with your local city, and what you know based on the amount of successes you get. On the other hand, be careful not to annoy your GM too much.

[Andrewmoreton]

Tailored pheromones give no Charisma modifier 'just' +1 on all face to face social tests

[MrButtons]

Tailored pheromones give no Charisma modifier 'just' +1 on all face to face social tests

Hmm, but the way it reads in the book "Tailored pheromones add their rating as a dice pool modifier to Charisma and Social Skill Tests." So face test yes, and since it adds a dice pool to Charisma, to me that translate to +1 Charisma. Am I reading it wrong?


I'd like to suggest, try to roll your knowledge on everything, even if you're half way across the world, ask if they deal with your local city, and what you know based on the amount of successes you get. On the other hand, be careful not to annoy your GM too much.

Thanks, I shall write that down. DM likes to roleplay a lot, so I don't think he'll mind.

[Andrewmoreton]

Hmm, but the way it reads in the book "Tailored pheromones add their rating as a dice pool modifier to Charisma and Social Skill Tests." So face test yes, and since it adds a dice pool to Charisma, to me that translate to +1 Charisma. Am I reading it wrong?



I would have to check the wording of the other augmentations but my understanding is that if it boosted Charisma it would just say increases charisma by 1 up to the augmented maximum. As I understand it (and GM it in this and previous editions) the charisma and social skill tests means that it adds a dice to the dice pool of any social skill test (not all use charisma, some of the rolls to resist other peoples social skills use other stats) or any Charisma based skill test such as intimidation and there are a few other charisma based rolls. This is also how it worked in an official missions game at a con organised by catalyst games.
As it is it is a seperate modifier so you can boost your charisma with magic to its augmented maximum and then add the tailored pheremones modifier on top .
Logically it cannot increase charisma , as it would make no sense for a mages astral form to gain a strength increase because he smells better. Also how would tailored pheremones help you charm someone over the telephone? unless it is a simsense link and they have the mod for getting a simmed sense of smell.

[Andrewmoreton]

Some more helpful comments!
1) You probably don't need seduction as a knowledge skill that comes under the heading of the Con skill.
2) Get some recoil comp on the sliver gun otherwise you lose accuracy fast (I think you will have to use Underbarrel weights, heavy barrel , shock pads , electronic firing or Peronalised grip as the normal gas compensators are not compatible with silencers)
3) You have negotiation, Con , and Etiquette at the same skill level, save points buy the influence skill group at level 2 instead (the gm may not allow you to take specialisations at character design if you do this, I would but in that case just don't get them and buy them cheaply with karma after your first run
4)IIRC a Defiance ex shocker is a Taser in which case it uses the pistol skill not unarmed combat. For unarmed combat you want shock gloves.
5) You have Negotiations listed twice I assume a typo but could save you points if you have bought it twice

[comicshorse]

Blandness seems a bit of a strange take for a pornstar

[The Glyphstone]

Blandness seems a bit of a strange take for a pornstar

Maybe he/she only does

:smallsmile:
:smallsmile:
:smallcool:

vanilla?

[MrButtons]

Some more helpful comments!
1) You probably don't need seduction as a knowledge skill that comes under the heading of the Con skill.
2) Get some recoil comp on the sliver gun otherwise you lose accuracy fast (I think you will have to use Underbarrel weights, heavy barrel , shock pads , electronic firing or Peronalised grip as the normal gas compensators are not compatible with silencers)
3) You have negotiation, Con , and Etiquette at the same skill level, save points buy the influence skill group at level 2 instead (the gm may not allow you to take specialisations at character design if you do this, I would but in that case just don't get them and buy them cheaply with karma after your first run
4)IIRC a Defiance ex shocker is a Taser in which case it uses the pistol skill not unarmed combat. For unarmed combat you want shock gloves.
5) You have Negotiations listed twice I assume a typo but could save you points if you have bought it twice

1) Pulling a con and seducing others are different in m books, I see what you mean though, DM did allow it, so why not keep it and have them stack up? Seduction was mostly for flavor to go with the job.
2) Right, burst-fire. Will do :)
3) Another good point, I'll put them together as Influence, I just didn't see Leadership being any useful to me
4) Totally is pistol, which is why I got it, and I spec it as unarmed as you can use that tazer as a melee weapon as I had no close combat option and figured a stun type weapon would be fantastic. Shock gloves can definitely be an extra option.
5)Typo!


Blandness seems a bit of a strange take for a pornstar
Felt it was pretty funny to be a bland pornstar (I jokingly call him the stunt ****) but mostly for the Infiltrator side so if I tried disguises or sneaking around, I'd be rather be more inconspicuous.

The Glyphstone: Well done! He's vanilla now, he tried kinky but that double Troll scene :P


I would have to check the wording of the other augmentations but my understanding is that if it boosted Charisma it would just say increases charisma by 1 up to the augmented maximum. As I understand it (and GM it in this and previous editions) the charisma and social skill tests means that it adds a dice to the dice pool of any social skill test (not all use charisma, some of the rolls to resist other peoples social skills use other stats) or any Charisma based skill test such as intimidation and there are a few other charisma based rolls. This is also how it worked in an official missions game at a con organised by catalyst games.
As it is it is a seperate modifier so you can boost your charisma with magic to its augmented maximum and then add the tailored pheremones modifier on top .
Logically it cannot increase charisma , as it would make no sense for a mages astral form to gain a strength increase because he smells better. Also how would tailored pheremones help you charm someone over the telephone? unless it is a simsense link and they have the mod for getting a simmed sense of smell.

You make a good point about the smell factor. I'll ask my DM.

Thanks a lot folks! I appreciate the help!

[The Random NPC]

3) Another good point, I'll put them together as Influence, I just didn't see Leadership being any useful to me

It costs 12 points per rank for 3 different skills, and only 10 if they're in a group. So, at 1 or 2 skills, buy them separately, at 3 or more, buy them as a group, even if you don't need the rest of the group.

[comicshorse]

The Glyphstone: Well done! He's vanilla now, he tried kinky but that double Troll scene :P


All i can say to that is OUCH :smalleek:

[Andrewmoreton]

Muscle Augmentation: Using a biological weaving treatment,
special vat-grown muscle cables are braided into existing muscle fibers,
enhancing the muscle’s mass and performance. Muscle augmentation
adds its rating to the character’s Strength. It is not compatible with
muscle replacement, but can be combined with muscle toner.

Tailored Pheromones:  e subject’s body is altered to release
specially designed pheromones to subtly infuence others. Tailored
pheromones add their rating as a dice pool modifer to Charisma and
Social Skill Tests.  is bonus has no effect on magical abilities and tests.

As you can see the wording is very different. Muscle Augmentation increases strength, Tailored pheromones do not increase charisma. (Also the official character design software does not add it to charisma but has been known to be wrong)

I had forgotten that some Tasers can be used in melee , I would have thought that was the clubs skill and it would be in a game I ran. But it is less than clear so it is a gm call.